What does it mean?

After sitting on the backlot tour for well over a decade and succumbing to the outdoor elements, the instantly recognizable "Lyon Estates" columns have mysteriously received a long-overdue refurbishment.

Anyone who has been to Universal Studios Hollywood in the past decade and took their backlot tour has no doubt seen the two-of-a-kind columns.  Over the years they've really taken a toll from the weather, and appeared to be another case of neglected props being unnecessarily subjected to the outdoors — left to rot away for the world to see instead of preserving them like all of the props from this classic film series should be.

The following photograh was taken this past summer by a BTTF.com staffer, which shows the Lyon Estates columns deteriorating on the backlot just six months ago:

We received this photo earlier this week from a scooper who wishes to remain anonymous, which shows the in-progress updates to the columns as they look today:

Naturally, we all immediately notice that there's now something direly missing from the columns — the "LYON ESTATES" lettering.  We can only hope that the refurbishment is not yet complete, and that the lettering will be replaced very shortly.  Still, it is quite pleasing to see these historic props getting a makeover.

But for what, and why now?  Good question.  While I am aware of plans soon for a refurbishment of the primary DeLorean time machine at USH, this has caught me off guard.  The refurbishment of the DeLorean makes sense — it is a highly visible and often used prop from the films.  But the columns haven't been used since they were seen in Back to the Future Part II in 1989, and they've been on the backlot ever since.

We can draw many conclusions as to why these have been updated.  Probably the most likely reason, and one that won't be met with any appreciation from BTTF fans, is that Universal has another use for the columns for an upcoming film or television shoot.  Less likely could be that Universal just decided to preserve these icons which thousands of backlot visitors see every day.  Or lastly, I'll throw it out for the sake of argument just in case — they're needed for a fourth film.  It's highly doubtful that they'd update them right out in the open if they were going to be used for that reason, as without a doubt a fourth film would be shrouded under secrecy and no hints would be left out for all of us "Peeping Toms".

Stay tuned for any other developments regarding this and other BTTF prop refurbishments.

Michael J. Fox Foundation raises more than $1 million for Parkinson's Research

It was revealed on Monday on Dateline NBC's interview with Michael J. Fox that his Foundation for Parkinson's Research, which launched just 9 months ago, has already raised well over $1 million in donations towards helping to find a cure for this disease.

Those of you who have purchased a BTTF.com hat from this site can take pride in knowing that you have assisted in this success.  Our fund-raising efforts continue, so those who have not yet participated can still do so by visiting our online catalog.

Packaging to Corgi DeLorean revealed

Looks like Corgi Classics' going all out on this item.  We just got this scan from a reader who picked up Corgi's current catalog at the New York Toy Fair this week, and it appears that the company has really put a lot of detail into this entire project.  The packaging appears to be top notch for collectors who will display the item unopened, boasting artwork from the movie poster.

It's already been noted that the doors open and the lightning harness pole is removable, and our reader tells us that Corgi had one on display at their booth, saying that the doors worked great and that they did a really good job overall on this miniature replica.

We've received tons of orders already for this item, which is due to ship the first week in April.  We're still taking pre-orders for this highly anticipated collectible, so visit our online catalog to reserve yours today.